A Defensive Battle Ends in a Wyoming Victory Over Northern Colorado

By Kaycee Clark-Mellott

Special to the Wyoming Truth

LARAMIE, Wyo.—The  Wyoming Cowboys ended Saturday with a victory, bringing their record to 2-1 after beating the Northern Colorado Bears (UNC) 33-10. The game was riddled with penalties as both teams accumulated seven infractions for more than 50 yards.

The difference between teams came from consistency on offense, third-down conversions and the turnover difference.

Wyoming totaled 293 yards on offense, including 144 passing yards by quarterback Andrew Peasley and 149 rushing yards by several running backs, with Titus Swen leading the team with 76 yards and three touchdowns.

Wyoming converted on eight of 18 third downs, while UNC was only four of 16.  UNC also gave the ball away three times, with an interception and fumble to end their last two drives of the game. 

Wyoming began the game with field goals on each of its first two drives for 6-0 lead. The Cowboys tacked on another field goal by kicker John Hoyland at the start of the second quarter to lead UNC 9-0 at halftime. 

After a UNC field goal to start the third quarter, Wyoming drove 75 yards to score a touchdown and lead 16-3. The Bears answered at the start of the fourth quarter to make it a six-point game, 16-10.

Wyoming added 17 points after a field goal, stopping UNC on fourth down, a 22-yard touchdown by Swen, an interception, another Swen touchdown and fumble recovery.

UNC was held to just 15 yards rushing on the day and 132 passing yards between the three quarterbacks. The Bears also struggled on special teams, with muffed punts and a botched kickoff that would pin them down at their own three-yard line.

The Wyoming defense punished the UNC offense. While only allowing 10  points, they also accumulated five sacks, two interceptions and a fumble. UNC’s quarterbacks—starter Dylan McCaffrey and second-string Jacob Sirmon—were injured and left the game.  

Wyoming didn’t get out of the game unscathed though. Swen has been battling a rib injury since the opening game at Illinois. Both Joey Braasch and D.Q. James left the field with injuries, while star offensive lineman Frank Crum also left the game and did not return to action.

Next up for Wyoming is a Friday night showdown on Sept. 16 against Air Force to open the  Mountain West conference games. Kickoff is set for 6:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.